2008 Haut Batailley

Savoury blackcurrant aromas, soft tannic texture, a little earthy note to finish. Not quite austere, but certainly more savoury than ripe in profile – but the structure is ready to drink now. (RH)

The 2008 Haut-Batailley has a modest nose: brambly red berry fruit, cedar, a little loose-knit and needing more complexity. The palate is medium-bodied with lighter tannins than I was expecting, a mixture of red and black fruit but missing that tension and mineralité towards the finish. Good, but surpassed by the 2009 and 2010. (Tasted at BI Wine & Spirit’s annual 10-Year On tasting.)

Tasted at a vertical tasting at the château.The 2008 Haut Batailley is service back to normal after the rather lacklustre 2007. It has a well defined, blackberry, minerally nose that has a sense of brightness and vivacity—a vivid set of aromatics that entice you inwards. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannin, crisp and focused with great tension and energy. I appreciate the purity embroidered into this wine from start to finish, the manner in which it gently fans out towards the long and precise finish. Excellent for the vintage, this is probably very good value in today's market. Tasted July 2016.